After a successful tournament in Colorado, No. 2 Wisconsin (6-2-0 WCHA, 10-2-0 overall) will head back out on the road for a weekend series against No. 4 North Dakota (7-2-1, 9-2-1), a team coming off one of the biggest wins in program history.
Last Sunday North Dakota defeated No. 1 Minnesota on the road, ending the Gophers’ historic 62-game win streak. The victory undoubtedly has them riding high, and UW head coach Mark Johnson is expecting to see an energized opponent come Friday night.
“The game Friday night, as we start, I’m sure they’re going to be quite energized, excited, and feeling good about themselves,” Johnson said.
UND has a high-powered and balanced offense, with four different players having recorded 13 points or more thus far. Junior forward Josefine Jakobsen leads the team in points, having tallied 15 on the season with six goals and nine assists.
Meanwhile, Wisconsin is also coming off a successful weekend, defeating two solid East Coast teams at a tournament in Vail, Colo.
The Badgers came out a little sluggish in the first game as they and their opponent Northeastern both tried to adjust to playing at a higher altitude. UW needed two third-period goals to secure a 3-2 come-from-behind victory.
“I didn’t think the altitude would affect the teams as much as it did in the first games for everybody,” Johnson said. “We found a way on Friday night to win, and I think everybody felt a lot better Saturday as they woke up and were used to the altitude a little bit.”
The go-ahead goal for the Badgers came courtesy of freshman defenseman Jenny Ryan with just 2:24 left in the game. It was her first career goal, and it couldn’t have come at a better time for Wisconsin.
“It was really exciting. I think I lost more breath yelling than I did actually skating down the ice,” Ryan said. “We were playing so well and so strong. The goal finally came, and it was definitely a team effort.”
The next night’s game ended up being much less stressful for the Badgers, as they cruised to a 5-0 win over No. 8 Boston University.
After getting the night off on Friday, senior goaltender Alex Rigsby looked sharp in the net, recording her 25th career shutout and 90th career win, leaving her just 1 win shy of Jessie Vetter’s school record.
If Rigsby is going to pass or even tie Vetter’s record this weekend, both she and her teammates will have to be at their best to try and stop North Dakota’s strong offensive attack.
“We know they’re going to be a strong team, they just beat Minnesota,” junior forward Blayre Turnbull said. “We know how important it is to come out fast, because they’re going to be just as fast as us.”
UW continues to have success on offense with a well-balanced attack and contributions from basically every player on the ice. In the Badgers’ 5-0 win over Boston last Saturday, all five goals came from different players.
For this weekend’s series against a tough North Dakota team, Coach Johnson believes the difference between winning and losing will be his team’s ability to capitalize on opportunities and limit mistakes.
“The big thing is to stay out of the penalty box both nights, give them as few power play opportunities as we can,” Johnson said. “We’ll try to play the game five-on-five and when we do get power plays, try to capitalize on them.”
The Badgers look like they’ve been firing on all cylinders the whole season, but they still have yet to pick up a conference road win, getting swept in their only away series by Minnesota.
Now, over a month later, they will once again be tested on the road by a quality opponent.
“It will set up as a good challenge for us,” Johnson said. “It should be a good weekend of hockey.”